(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
RACINE, Wis. — Defense attorney Grant Van Henderson asked for more time to prepare for trial after receiving additional discovery late Friday, but Judge Chad Kerkman (D) denied the request and ordered the trial to proceed Monday. By the end of the day, however, the proceedings had ended in a mistrial after Kerkman allegedly committed what one courthouse insider described as a “rookie mistake” by informing jurors the case was a felony.
Kerkman, a Kenosha County judge assigned to the case after what appears to have been the recusal of all Racine County judges, denied the defense’s request to adjourn the trial despite Van Henderson telling the court he had received new discovery only one business day before trial. Prosecutors acknowledged they had only recently received the materials themselves late Friday afternoon. According to the official court minutes, the defense argued additional time was needed to review the evidence before selecting a jury, but the request was denied.
Jury selection proceeded Monday morning, and a panel was selected and sworn. According to courthouse insiders familiar with the proceedings, Kerkman then told the jury that the case was a felony matter.
Experienced criminal judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys understand that jurors are not to be told whether a case is a felony or misdemeanor, nor are they to hear anything about potential penalties. Jurors are instructed to decide only whether the State has proven the charges beyond a reasonable doubt based solely on the evidence presented at trial.
One courthouse insider told Kenosha County Eye that Kerkman, who is assigned to the juvenile rotation rather than the adult criminal rotation, made what the source described as a “rookie mistake.” Defense counsel immediately moved for a mistrial.
The official court record confirms the defense requested a mistrial after the jury had been sworn, and Kerkman granted the motion, ordering that a new jury panel be selected. What happened next was even more unusual.
Rather than adjourning the case to allow the defense additional time to review the recently disclosed discovery that had prompted the original continuance request, Kerkman instead restarted the trial the very next day.
On Tuesday, June 30, a brand-new jury was impaneled, and the trial began again, giving the defense essentially no additional time beyond overnight to review the late-produced evidence.
Court records further show that months earlier, all scheduled proceedings in the case were removed from the calendar after the presiding Racine County judicial officer recused from all of the defendant’s files. The case was subsequently reassigned through the judicial assignment process, ultimately resulting in Kerkman presiding over the matter. The publicly available court records do not explain why the Racine County judges recused themselves.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the retrial with the newly selected jury was underway.
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3 Responses
Could one expect anything less from this halfwit?
“Kerkman”
A name to be considered in understanding why Kenosha County is the way it is.
Jerkman strikes again, glad he’s the boss.
He needs his scapegoat Bingo back to comfort him in his chambers.